Thomas Built Buses preliminary evaluation PE11029
Thomas Built CNG Tank Abrasion. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the storage on 9 model years (2003–2011). Opened Sep 2, 2011, closed Feb 17, 2012 after 6 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedOn August 29, 2011 ODI received a Vehicle Owner's Questionnaire (VOQ) from a Los Angeles school district indicating a 2003 Thomas Built Saf-T-Liner HDX compressed natural gas (CNG) school bus in their fleet had insufficient clearance between the CNG tank and mounting bracket resulting in damage to the outer tank wrapping. The Mathematical Analysis Division of NHTSA calculated that a sample size of thirty (30) buses would give a high confidence (90%) estimation of whether similar buses were experiencing tank abrasion. In the course of this investigation nearly 70 buses (over 300 tanks) were inspected; no tank other than the subject of the VOQ was found to have insufficient clearance. Busses manufactured before and after the subject vehicle were inspected. As a result of this investigation, Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) developed an improved inspection procedure that addresses the concerns identified in the Los Angeles complaint. In early February 2012 DTNA will mail an owner letter along with the new inspection procedure. See the investigative file for copies of DTNA's bulletin and owner letter. This preliminary evaluation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that no safety-related defect exists. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by circumstances. The ODI report cited above can be reviewed at www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following identification (ODI) number:10423400
A Preliminary Evaluation is the first formal stage: NHTSA has decided the complaints and other information it screened are worth a closer look, and asks the manufacturer for its own data on the condition. The summary is the agency’s own text from its investigation file, unedited; the opening and closing resumes with the full reasoning are on NHTSA’s site under this number.
What this means for an owner
Source: and what happens nextAn investigation is not a finding that a defect exists, and it puts no duty on anyone. NHTSA opens a Preliminary Evaluation when complaints and other reports suggest a condition worth asking the manufacturer about; it upgrades to an Engineering Analysis when the answers warrant testing; it closes either when it recommends a recall, when the manufacturer recalls on its own, or when no defect trend is found. The agency’s own goals are about four months for a petition, eight for a Preliminary Evaluation or a Recall Query and eighteen for an Engineering Analysis; many run longer.
This one closed without a recall. That means NHTSA found no defect trend it chose to act on at the time, or the manufacturer addressed the condition another way (a service campaign or a bulletin, which have their own pages). A closed file can be reopened if new reports arrive.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themAlso named: 2003 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX; 2004 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX; 2005 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX; 2006 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX; 2007 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX; 2008 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX; 2009 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX; 2010 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX; 2011 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX.
A vehicle page’s investigation list carries the same action; a name here is the scope NHTSA opened, not a list of affected VINs.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects InvestigationIs PE11029 a recall?
No. A preliminary evaluation is NHTSA asking questions, not a recall. A safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number and a duty to repair for free; this one closed without one. Whether one particular vehicle has an open recall is a VIN question at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Is PE11029 still open?
No. It closed on Feb 17, 2012 without a recall.
Which vehicles does PE11029 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 9 model years: 2003 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX, 2004 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX, 2005 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX, 2006 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX, 2007 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX, 2008 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDX and more. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.